Character History: Ratchet joined the space bridge repair crews not long after the Great War ended. Incidents with Decepticons like Oil Slick earlier in his field tech career taught him caution, but it was the run-in with Lockdown while trying to save an intelligence officer named Arcee that really strained Ratchet emotionally. When both he and Arcee were taken prisoner by the bounty hunter, a fight for Ratchet's EMP generator with Lockdown caused the device to overload and go off. Arcee took the brunt of the pulse, her memory core wiped. And even though she had requested that such action be taken against her so that the valuable access codes she carried would not fall into Decepticon hands, Ratchet could not help but feel as though he could have done more to save her. As the only one immune to EMP, he was forced to go on with feelings of regret and guilt that that would later cause him to find work away from Cybertron in the hopes that he could leave such painful memories behind. Eventually he was assigned to work under a bot named Optimus Prime, an apparent Autobot Academy washout. The two developed a mutual respect for one another over time and Ratchet took on the role of unofficial advisor to the crew leader. Medic, engineer, advisor and drill sergeant of sorts, he had his work cut out for him on a team made up of much younger Autobots.

After the incident with Megatron and the Decepticon flagship Nemesis, and following the crash to Earth, Ratchet became part of the first Earth detachment Autobot crew along with Prime and the rest. Together, they survived a number of run-ins with human villains and Decepticons alike over several months, working to protect the city of Detroit, Michigan, the All Spark and their new human allies. At one point during this time period, Lockdown reappeared and took Optimus Prime prisoner for a Decepticon bounty. This forced Ratchet to not only face his past, but to give the bounty hunter a sound thrashing in order to save his crew leader. And like the rest of his team, Ratchet survived the first encounter and battle with a newly revived Megatron, though the medic lost a good portion of his right arm to Blitzwing at the time (which was later repaired by Sari and her Key). In that fight, the All Spark was shattered, blown apart by an overload forced upon Megatron by Optimus Prime with Sari's Key.

A major deciding battle took place months later. Having built a space bridge of their own on Earth, the Decepticons were preparing to return to Cybertron with plans to take over once and for all. With the Elite Guard distracted by Decepticon uprisings on the edges of Autobot territory, only Optimus' team and their allies stood between Megatron and victory. In a "no holds barred" battle, Ratchet and Sari used the All Spark shards to reactivate the spark within the crashed Autobot shuttle, bringing Omega Supreme online. Omega trashed more than half the Decepticon forces outside their own lair and then made the choice to sacrifice himself when the space bridge went haywire during the fight inside. By that time, the bridge had already claimed two of the Starscream clones, Blurr, Starscream and Megatron. Ratchet and Sari were forcibly ejected before the bridge took Omega and blew itself out, leaving the medic to mourn the loss of yet another old friend.

Downtime was not a luxury the Autobots could afford following such a major battle, however, especially since it was revealed immediately after that Sari was not actually human, but a human-Cybertronian hybrid of sorts. While Optimus Prime attempted to play mediator between Sari and her father, as the girl was justifiably upset about having never been told of all this, Ratchet saw to examining her to determine the nature of her build and origins. In the meantime, Bumblebee and Bulkhead attempted to use some of the busted space bridge equipment to locate Omega Supreme. After a run-in with the Headmaster and some mishaps with the equipment, Omega was found and transported back to Earth...with Megatron and Starscream at the helm. Sari had, by that time, attempted to upgrade herself with The Key and nearly destroyed a large section of Detroit in the process, leaving Ratchet to attend to her while the other Autobots attempted to stop Omega Supreme's rampage. In the end, Ratchet faced down Omega Supreme and tried to use his EMP generator to stop his old friend when the shuttle bot was unable to break from Decepticon control on his own. The attempt failed, however, and Starscream tried to use Omega to retreat to Cybertron. His plans were thwarted when Bumblebee produced a space bridge part from one of his onboard compartments that caused random teleportations and Prime affixed it to Omega's hull, sending him and the Decepticons on board on a wild and random trip throughout the universe that would hopefully keep them from ever reaching their home planet.

It was during those events that we learned a good deal more about the relationship between Ratchet and Omega Supreme, who was intended to be a simple minded weapon of mass destruction created by the Ministry of Science for use in the Great War. Originally, Arcee had been his intended keeper, but when she fell victim to memory loss, Ratchet was granted the access codes she had been guarding and made handler in her place. It was never a job the medic wanted, being in charge of something meant to destroy, even though he was told by Supreme Commander Ultra Magnus that sometimes, in war, “we do what we must.” In the end, however, Omega Supreme fell in combat and Ratchet placed his spark in a special stasis lock-like state in order to preserve his life. That decision left him in shuttle mode, long term. It was yet another regret in a long list of them for Ratchet, even though he had done his best to teach Omega to protect like an Autobot instead of destroy like a Decepticon.

In the months following, Ratchet survived more incidents with various Decepticons, including Soundwave, who attempted to corrupt the programming of all the Autobots over Christmas and turn them against the humans of Detroit. He was there when Wasp arrived on Earth and tried to impersonate Bumblebee, as well.

Finally, the Autobots managed to construct their own space bridge atop Sumdac tower with the help of Sari's father. It was not long after this that Captain Carmine Fanzone was accidentally sucked through the portal and sent to Cybertron. Ratchet dutifully (although grumpily) followed the poor human to bring him back to Earth, only to find that Sentinel Prime had taken over on Cybertron as temporary Magnus. The traitor in the midst of the Autobot Elite Guard had attacked and rendered Ultra Magnus incapable of performing his duties, left in stasis (and somewhat in pieces!) in the Central Infirmary. However, before Sentinel could arrest Ratchet for bringing a human onto the planet, Omega Supreme ported in overhead. Sentinel's immediate reaction was to shoot the old war hero down, but Ratchet challenged him before the Council on that decision, then ran off with Fanzone when Sentinel accused him of treason for defying his will. After escaping into an old underground tunnel system, Ratchet and Fanzone had a run in with Shockwave, who had been acting as a Decepticon spy under the guise of Autobot Longarm Prime. The Decepticons required the original access codes for Omega Supreme and Ratchet claimed they would have to take them from his cold, offline processors. Shockwave assured him that he had no intention of taking that route, but instead would go back to the original code source – Arcee. After Shockwave escaped them, Ratchet and Fanzone hurried to beat him to the Central Infirmary, running into Elite Guard member Jazz along the way, who rather than arrest them ended up helping them gain access to the building. Unfortunately, Ratchet ended up leading Shockwave directly to Arcee and a battle ensued through the hallways, only ending when Sentinel broke in on the scene and attempted to arrest Ratchet, giving Shockwave the window of opportunity required to escape with Arcee. All said and done, Ratchet and Fanzone escaped back to Earth with the coveted Magnus Hammer, Jazz following them through in order to join Optimus Prime's team.

Not long after his return to Earth, Ratchet attempted to rally the other Autobots to the idea that they needed to be proactive – go after Megatron and save both Arcee and Omega Supreme. Optimus Prime tasked Ratchet with building him a winged jet pack while he learned to wield the Magnus Hammer. It wasn't long before they learned the location of Omega Supreme, however. Megatron had set up a temporary base of operations on the moon, intending to use some stolen protoforms to create his own trio of Omega Supreme-like warriors, then utilize Arcee's access codes to take control of them. Ratchet, Bulkhead, Bumblebee and Sari used the space bridge on Sumdac Tower to reach the moon, then engaged Shockwave in battle and defeated him. By that point, however, Megatron had already taken the “Lugnut Supremes” and headed for Earth, forcing Ratchet and Sari to seek a way to reactivate Omega Supreme so they could help Optimus Prime, Jazz and Prowl defend the planet. At Sari's suggestion, Ratchet made some adjustments to his EMP generator and successfully restored Arcee's memories. With no time to catch up after being reunited, they quickly brought Omega Supreme back online and rejoined the battle, managing to take out one of Megatron's weapons of mass destruction before a second one brought them crashing to the streets of Detroit. Unfortunately for all involved, Starscream had planted bombs on all the Lugnut Supremes, the explosives powerful enough to wipe Detroit off the map. In a last ditch effort to save the city, Prowl and Jazz recalled all the missing shards of AllSpark scattered throughout the area using their Processor Over Matter meditation technique. But in the end, it wasn't enough and Prowl sacrificed his own spark to help the shards create a containment shield that held in the bomb blast, saving the city. Optimus defeated Megatron in a final duel and the Autobots used Omega Supreme to return to Cybertron. Ratchet was present with his crewmates upon arrival, aiding the others in carrying Prowl's coffin off the shuttle as the Decepticons disembarked as prisoners of the Elite Guard.

Nautilus History: Ratchet was one of the very first to arrive in Nautilus, Waking when the city was still full of stark white buildings and devoid of sun, moon and weather patterns. He was fortunate that Prowl and Optimus Prime arrived around the same time, giving him trustworthy companions to turn to while he adjusted to his new life, learned to bend and established the Medbay in the Northern District. Ratchet's very first patient in the City of Change was a man named James Sunderland, who after weeks of living with the old bot became a good friend and student of Cybertronian repair. Over time, Ratchet made many other friends and adopted family members, opening his home as a place to stay for those who needed a roof over their heads. Among them were Sari Sumdac, Squall Leonhart, Pandora, Wreck-Gar, Roxas, Red Trafford, Mister Monday, Pepper Potts, Riyaz and several others. He learned human medicine and surgical techniques from Nathan Wallace, as well as martial arts skills from Jazz and how to play the guitar from Demyx and Alexander Wolfgang. At one point, Ratchet held the Magnus Hammer as temporary leader of the Autobots in Nautilus after Optimus Prime returned to Sleep. He relinquished the title and turned the famed weapon back over once more when Prime re-Awakened months later. The old bot even found love at one point with a young human woman named Subaru, but their relationship was not meant to last. Shortly after bonding with her, Ratchet was devastated when she was suddenly returned to Sleep. The shock of it nearly put him to Sleep as well. It was the worst one year anniversary gift he could have been given, though he eventually managed to move past the loss.

Ratchet was also one of the first to die in Nautilus, murdered after only being there a few months by Starscream and Blitzwing. His passing marked the start of a good deal of trouble in the city as not long after he was resurrected and his killers incarcerated in the Western District prison, they broke free and, with the help of Kyd Wykkyd, killed the Deva of Change, Cyrus. With Starscream attempting to wield the power of Nautilus, the city fell into chaos. Ratchet was among those who fought bravely against the shadowy wraiths that emerged to destroy the Wakenend and eventually lent a servo to the attempt to dethrone the treacherous Seeker. Nautilus itself ejected Starscream from the central Tower in the long run, however, and one of Cyrus' Ashura, Aaron de Bertilak, rose to power to become the new Deva overseer, Ameras.

After surviving the city take over and several reality storms, including one that pitted Ratchet against his own evil clone, the time came to face Ameras' sister, the Deva of Glass, Isis. Long had the Wakened been warned that she would eventually find them. Determined to convert the entire multiverse to her idea of Ordered perfection, Isis arrived in Nautilus and attempted to sway as many as possible to her cause. Ratchet was one of those who resisted, albeit cautiously so as not to be Unmade by the order obsessed Deva. And when the time came to face Isis in Kalliste, Ratchet headed up the ranks of healers on Helix, the city in use as transport to the City of Glass for the final battle.

The medic's life following that period was plagued now and then by reality storms and various “gifts” from Nautilus. A couple of times, he was forced to revert to a younger version of himself, becoming one of those noisy young whippersnappers he normally spent time complaining about. He also lost control of one of his alternate forms at one point, turning into a wild techno-organic bear that lived on the city outskirts for a week until his friends were able to aid him in regaining control of himself. He took up mentor-ship of several students over the months, teaching them healing through bending as well as first aid and repair the old fashioned way. And, in a solo trip beyond Nautilus, Ratchet visited the Shattered Glass Universe in order to study its inhabitants and return with information that would help him and others better deal with Cybertronians with embers instead of sparks after Prime became one during a particularly messy reality storm. (This was technically his second foray beyond the city, as the first was with Ameras and a number of others to repair the broken world of Silent Hill many months prior.)

A few months after his two year anniversary in Nautilus, Ratchet set out on another mission beyond Nautilus to seek out and make a study of a number of damaged worlds. He took Antovil's compass with him, intending to return to the city after only a couple of weeks. However, near the end of his mission, Ratchet accidentally came across deadly enemy – a dark Aeon that fed on others of its kind. Knowing that knowledge of such an entity would be useful should it ever find its way to Nautilus, Ratchet attempted to observe and record data from what he thought was a safe distance. Unfortunately, he was detected and, as a result, nearly pulled in and devoured by the Aeon. It was only some quick thinking and expert bending that kept Ratchet from being completely wiped from the face of multiverse. The Aeon managed to seize his physical form and a part of his essence, but what part remained fled into the compass and by force of will alone, was cast away from the Aeon with Angelii teleportation. For months, Ratchet was lost in the vastness of all that is, struggling to keep what remained of himself together. The compass itself and his connection to it eventually served to allow him to find his way back to Nautilus; without it, he would have been lost until he expired completely and permanently.

When Ratchet finally did make it back, he only had enough strength to bend a small organic body for himself - that of a bear cub. Unable to speak much, he was taken in by Lelouch until he was able to regain his default form. He then reclaimed the Magnus Hammer and took up the position of de facto Autobot leader in Nautilus.

It wasn’t long after that point when disaster struck, the Dark Aeon finding its way to Nautilus and assaulting the city after Neriae’s fall. With the chains cut and Nautilus falling away from it, the Dark Aeon drove massive tentacles into the various districts to keep the city from escaping, then forced horrible waking nightmares upon the inhabitants. Ratchet did not escape the torture, confronted by people from his past who demanded to know why he hadn’t been able to save them from Sleep or death. He was then rescued from Dark Aeon spawn by Sideswipe, Arcee and Luna.

Ratchet was present during the city’s final stand against the Dark Aeon, the old medic having insisted that there was no saving it and that it could only be permanently destroyed. He gathered with the likes of Lelouch, Death and Axel, the group focusing their destructive bending against the Dark Aeon overhead. When all was said and done with the collective bending efforts of nearly the entire population of Nautilus, the Dark Aeon was Unmade and the city set free.

Sometime after that, Ratchet began to feel the call once more to head back out into the Between to do Angelii work. Knowing he was not long for the city, he invited as many as would attend to a meeting in the Plaza of Waterfalls where he and Tally gave something of a presentation on the history of the Ascended and Nautilus up to the point where the Dark Aeon attacked.

As he prepared to leave once more, Ratchet gave his farewells, taking time for Lelouch and Sideswipe in particular. To the younger Autobot, the medic left the Magnus Hammer, telling him to hold onto it and learn to use it, perhaps until such time as Optimus Prime re-Awakened or until Ultra Magnus found his way to Nautilus.

While away, Ratchet has been traveling the Between and checking in on various worlds for damages. In one case, the errors were so many that he sent for Lelouch, the Ashura leaving Nautilus for a few months to join his old friend so that they could handle repair work together. Lelouch has since returned to Nautilus.

Character Personality: During his time on Earth, Ratchet managed to become a bit less of a grouch thanks to the influence of his teammates and their human allies. You could have called him an "old, soft touch", but only if you wanted to be snarked at for your trouble. Despite the progress he made, however, Ratchet was still determined to keep his compassion for others under wraps much of the time; he had a reputation to maintain and part of him still feared being too open to emotional damage. His tendency for less than pleasant bedside manner aside even back then, when it came to protecting life, Ratchet was and still is about as fierce as they come. (Though it should be noted that through his development in Nautilus, Ratchet has also come to realize that in rare and extreme circumstances, such as with Isis and the Dark Aeon, sometimes it is regrettably acceptable to take one life in order to spare the majority.)

Wise and war seasoned, Ratchet is the tough old codger you can turn to when you need advice in the field. He was also the most promising medical mind on Cybertron prior to his run-in with Lockdown and while he's suffered emotional damages as a result of that incident, he is still an incredibly skilled physician and engineer. Give him enough wire and spare parts, and he can "MacGuyver" together anything from personal force field generators to grenades. Though for as wise as he can be, Ratchet can be just as stubborn and set in his ways. It sometimes takes him longer to adapt to new situations and when faced with something he doesn't understand or an idea that doesn't appear logical, his first reaction is often to get cranky about it.

Fortunately, being in the City of Change for a few years total had a very positive effect on the old bot. After learning how to meditate from Prowl and taking up Metallikato and Cyber-Su lessons with Jazz for a time, Ratchet learned how to be more patient. In the months following, he slowly moved down a path that allowed him to become a bit more “zen” in nature, seeking moments of quiet when bothered rather than immediately pitching fits and hurling tools. As he has also had a one-time personal connection to the Heart of Nautilus, Ratchet also boasts a deeper understanding of the ebb and flow of the multiverse than most within the city. He believes in the mission Cyrus originally set out to complete regarding the Calling of new Wakened, as well in what Ameras did to finish what the Deva of Change began. Ratchet's ability to remain loyal to a cause has transferred in some ways to this newer belief; not only does he uphold the original Autobot creed to protect life, but the one set forth by his Devas to guard, repair and expand the multiverse so that it flourishes in a balance of Order and Chaos.

While he still gets frustrated with them from time to time, Ratchet has developed a soft spot for the younger set, a trait in odd contrast to his old gripes about youngsters and their rowdy ways. Not just children, but often teenagers as well. He does not do well in putting up with pranks and shenanigans (and is not afraid to dole out reprimands and punishments for such behavior), but he does enjoy spending time with at least decently behaved youngsters as a father or grandfather might, teaching them and encouraging innocent fun. As a mentor on the whole, Ratchet is a tough instructor when it comes to his medical and engineering lessons. He puts everything he has into training up his students and he expects the same in return when it comes to said students completing their works and passing their exams.

Where deeper relationships are concerned, Ratchet has been known to forge bonds with others on a family level, especially fond of adopting those he could consider like children or grandchildren of his own. While he would gladly give up his life to protect others in any case, whether stranger or ally, he is even more passionate about giving all he has for those he considers family. Such people in Nautilus included Sari Sumdac, Optimus Prime, Sideswipe and Lelouch vi Britannia. However, Ratchet is much more cautious about involving himself in romantic relationships. There is a greater chance of being burned that way, plus at his age, he would seek to find a bonded rather than taking on more casual relationships. If he commits, he wants to commit for the remainder of his life.

Ratchet's exact age is not given in canon, but he has been online since the Great War and is thus in excess of several million years in age. (My personal headcanon is set at approximately 14 million stellar cycles, using the timeline of Cybertronian historical events in the AllSpark Almanac, volume 1.)

Powers and Abilities: : Ratchet's favored tools and weapons are a pair of magnetic clamps that extend from both forearms that allow him to pull, push, lift and even shape just about any metal object. Both can also act as a pair of pincers. He has magnets on the soles of his feet, as well. Ratchet also has use of an EMP generator, built into his left arm. It is technically a medical tool used to keep others from feeling pain while he operates, but it can also be used as a weapon to slow down or even put down enemies. He just hesitates to use it much due to what the tool was used for in the past, as well as due to what such a device is capable of causing. Using it as a weapon is a last resort. Ratchet, himself, is immune to EMP bursts.

After spending time with both Prowl and Jazz in Nautilus as a student of Cybertronian martial arts, Ratchet is a decent hand-to-hand combatant in the arts of Cyber-Su and Metallikato. At one time, he wielded a scaled up version of the Retsuzan, a bladed demon guitar with the ability to command the element of lightning that was left behind by his friend Zanki. However, while on his first trip away from Nautilus, the Retsuzan was lost, destroyed by the Dark Aeon. Ratchet still maintains a connection with the ability to control lightning and electricity however, as he bound the weapon to himself (along with his heavy armored form) before the final battle with Isis in Kalliste.

Additionally, as an Angelii, Ratchet is an accomplished bender with access to higher Ascended powers such as teleportation and The Sight.

SamplesNetwork: [The camera, focused on the outer Northern Gate, is suddenly treated to a light show. As thunder rumbles overhead, forks of lightning arc down and electrify the gate doors and pillars.]

[From out of the blue and white flashes, a form swiftly materializes. The view pans up, starting with a familiar pair of red and white stabilizing servos before pausing briefly over a red Autobrand, bordered in white on an equally red hood. By the time the view reaches the old scarred faceplate and helm, it switches over to an open wrist panel comm.]

Well, nice to see you lot didn't completely frag the place up while I was away! Been a good ten months, hasn't it? Time’s harder for the old internal chronometer to keep track of out there in all that open space.

[Stepping away from the gate, Ratchet heads into the city proper.]

Now then, I’d better not get back to my Medbay to find that anyone’s been throwin’ wild, high grade driven parties in there, or so help me I’ll start gluing and welding the guilty parties to walls!

Third Person: Ratchet was no stranger to change. After all, Cybertronians could live for millions of stellar cycles. That was more than long enough to see entire alien species evolve, rise to power and fall again into the dust. Having been a part of the Nautilus, Ratchet himself had changed a good deal. He’d seen and experienced much, molding him into a stronger, more capable individual.

Yet each time he left and returned, he couldn't help but feel a sense of longing for what had been in times past. The old familiar faces of those he first Woke with were long gone, either venturing out into the beyond to do their own Ascended work, or falling back once more into the clutches of Sleep. A handful of old friends and allies still remained, of course. The likes of Lelouch, Suzaku, Death, Nash and Thomas. Ratchet supposed he could count a few of the later arrivals as well, such as Sideswipe and Xemnas.

Yet there were so many new faces, even from the last time. And from that previous time, some of those he had gotten to know then were now gone.

The cycle continued, the Call to Wake and the release to Sleep ever in motion like the ebb and flow of some universal tide.

Ratchet supposed that would be one of the few things that never changed... Missing those who had gone. The ache dulled over time, but with a memory that was so largely flawless, it was impossible to forget anyone, allowing even the deepest, oldest scars to remain.

Still, there was work to do. Always more work. As he stood in the main Medbay work area, gaze on the empty work tables and dusty shelves full of tools, he knew that all too well. Someone would need to help the other Ascended teach any newer Wakened about what had come before them. There would always be students to instruct in human medicine and mechanical repair. Clearly, an old bot like Ratchet would always be needed to some capacity. All those fears he’d once had in his own universe about becoming outdated and obsolete were issues of the past.

Heading into the main hallway, Ratchet entered the supply room and went to a sealed cabinet where he used bending to open the double metal doors. Taking out a can of energon, he then shut the cabinet again and went to sit before the building’s mainframe console. He entered his code, bringing the Medbay fully back to life again, the lights overhead turning on. No longer would the place be a stop over for those seeking medical supplies and diagnostic equipment. It would once again be both a home and a refuge.

Perhaps Ratchet been Called again, even though he’d never gone back to Sleep. He preferred to think so, anyway. Nautilus, as odd of a being as it could be, was still like an old friend. One that was always there to return home to at the end of a long journey.

Sitting back in his chair, the old medibot cracked open his can of energon and raised it in the direction of the center of the city and the Heart of Nautilus.

“To you, old friend, and to Cyrus. To all that changes and to all that remains the same... May we keep The Balance.”